Truong Hai Auto Corporation, or Thaco, has announced its acquisition of 69.7 million shares of Hoang Anh Gia Lai Agricultural Company (HAGL Agrico), a subsidiary of local property firm Hoang Anh Gia Lai.
According to news reports, transactions will take place within one month, starting from April 23, thus raising the ownership of the domestic automaker and assembler in HAGL Agrico from 0% to 7.86%.
The news sent HAGL Agrico's HNG stock soaring 4.6% to VND15,800 on the morning of April 17, after several previous sessions of falling or moving sideways. Closing the session, the HNG share price advanced 3.3% to VND15,600.
Given the current price, Thaco is expected to spend over VND1.1 trillion on the HNG share purchase.
In August 2018, Thaco spent over VND2.2 trillion buying over 221,000 convertible unsecured bonds of HAGL Agrico, priced at VND10 million each. The bond comes with a term of one year and a coupon of 0%.
When the bonds are converted, Thaco will own some 35% of the charter capital of HAGL Agrico.
Last month, Thaco established THADI, a firm specializing in processing and distribution in the agricultural sector. THADI teamed up with HNG to export fruits to high-income markets, purchase fruits from farmers and provide warehouse and logistics services.
With its close cooperation with HAGL Agrico, Thaco is expanding its operations into the agricultural industry.
At the end of 2018, the Hochiminh Stock Exchange put the HNG stock on a watch list due to the loss of over VND659 billion, as the firm re-evaluated its ineffective assets and adjusted some operating costs.
This year, HAGL Agrico looks to gain more than VND4.7 trillion in revenue, mostly from its fruit and rubber segments. Its profit is projected at VND103 billion.